Tickets for Kabuki?
 

I was hoping to be able to see a performance at Minamiza Theatre in Kyoto. Could anyone tell me a bit more about the accessibility of kabuki theatre in Kyoto for English speaking tourists and the best way to purchase tickets? We will be visiting mid-November and I am not sure what's scheduled at this time of year. My wife had wanted to see a Noh play, but from what little research I've done, that seems less accessible (harder to follow and appreciate) than kabuki.

Kabuki was started by women (I expect it had partly something to do with Noh being inaccessible and elitist) and history has come full circle with the all female Takarazuka Revue (started partly because Kabuki was considered inaccessible and elitist)

Kabuki and Noh companies periodically come to Europe and North America and when they do the quality of the performances is very bit as good as it is in Japan plus there are improved translation facilities as well as introductions, talks and workshops to help the non-Japanese speaking audiences get the most out of the plays. Unless you are already familiar with the formats, stories and actors, seeing Kabuki or Noh in Japan isn't going to be better than experiencing it in your own country.

Takarazuka (for someone who knows next to nothing about Noh or Kabuki) may be more enjoyable as well as being more of an "only in Japan" experience. Have you considered this as an option instead?

Here is website...a little too early to see what is playing Mid November.

http://www.kabuki-bito.jp/eng/conten..._minamiza.html

As for Kabuki, I did attend one show at the Osaka theatre. Seems to me at that time you could buy tickets from their website, but I don't see that possibility now. You probably could buy at a Loppi machine (Lawson Convenience stores), but without Japanese language skills, you would need someone to assist you on that.

There were no English language headphones for the performance I attended. I left after the first act, not so much for finding in incomprehensible, but more that I just did not like it and was bored stiff.

Now, if your really want some offbeat Japanese theatre, try the Takarazuka Revue. Think musical production with a separate Busby Berkely type show for the finale as well...it has a huge female following in Japan and has been on the go for over 90 years. As strange as it sounds, we had a good time there, so if you have any interest in old time Hollywood musicals it is well worth the time. Tickets again though are hard to come by.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takarazuka_Revue

(Edit-I see LapLap already brought up the Takarazuka Revue topic while I was typing out my reply, so I suppose at least 2 of us on this board consider it worth seeing!)

Takarazuka Revue looks way more my speed and if the photos are anything to go by, the missus will love it too! Thanks so much to the both fo you for the suggestion!

My wife took Japanese theater classes in college (along with Japanese literature, etc) so she does have a bit of background, but I imagine I'd be bored stiff as well. In fact, the only reason I wanted to aim for Kyoto was because I thought the building looked more interesting and so I figured it might be fun to dress up and go for the history and cultural experience, knowing my wife would take more away. I'd admire the colorful clothes and sets, the surroundings, etc. Takarazuka sounds like something we'd both enjoy far more though! Any idea whether it can be booked online?

On second thought, what I see on Youtube doesn't appeal to me at all. I was expecting some kind of weird Japanese-American fetishized Depression-era jazz chorus line straight out of the '30s Dream Factory and less Broadway musical, which admittedly I can't stomach. The Wikipedia article made it sound a lot cooler.

I went to Kabuki twice in Japan, both in the Ginza theater. first time, I didn't have the in-ear translation (must have overlooked it). Even though it was a play that I had studied, it will still pretty boring. The second time, I made sure to get the in-ear and enjoyed it much more. It is heavily stylized, and the Japanese spoken is so accented that many Japanese can't even follow. But I think the entire experience is worth it, especially if you pick a single performance with a good amount of action. The in-ear does a good job of explaining not only the story, but also some of the conventions you see, such as special poses.

If there isn't translation in the Kyoto theater and you think you'll have opportunities to see Kabuki at home with translation, not sure what I'd do. One thing that is fun is hearing the (seemingly random) shouts from the Japanese audience members for their favorite actors.

If you want to see Kabuki, save it for the Tokyo Ginza theater, where you can rent earphones with English commentary.

Even if you don't see a play, the basement has a kind of shopping area with booths selling traditional souvenirs and patent medicines.

I've seen bunraku (puppet theater) twice, and it can be fun to watch what the puppets are able to do and how the taiyu (narrator) changes his voice to represent the characters. It's headquartered in Osaka and travels to Tokyo a few times a year.

On the other hand, Noh is pretty boring, even to those of us who have read some of the plays, as I had to for my graduate work. Slow-moving doesn't begin to describe them.